Passing of the USA’s Senate Agriculture Appropriations Bill last week without language that would have heavily impacted the nation’s hemp industry has been welcomed by the U.S. Hemp Roundtable.
The Bill previously included wording that would have banned intoxicating hemp products. While hemp by legal definition is low in naturally-occurring intoxicating cannabinoids such as delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, they can be created by manipulating the non-intoxicating cannabinoid cannabidiol; which hemp can be high in.
Chair of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) revived efforts for what is effectively a ban by tinkering with the FY2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, which would have redefined hemp in a way that prohibits any product containing a “quantifiable” amount of THC.
The inclusion of such language would have wiped out more than 95% of the USA’s hemp industry according to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, the nation’s leading hemp business advocacy organization.
“The removal of language that would have redefined hemp and resulted in the destruction of the industry is a huge win for everyone,” said the organization’s general counsel, Jonathan Miller. “Congress is keeping the promise they made to American
farmers and reaffirming support for a growing industry.”
Senator Rand Paul has been credited with leading the efforts for its removal and is continuing to try and find common ground for a compromise.
“We hope these discussions will serve as a helpful framework moving forward as we work with Congress to pass robust regulations rather than prohibit products consumers rely on,” said Mr. Miller. “We appreciate Senator Mitch McConnell’s willingness to listen to the hemp industry and its supporters.”
U.S. Hemp Roundtable calls Kentucky home and worked with Sen. McConnell on the 2018 Farm Bill that legalised hemp, making it an agricultural commodity. But it also gave rise to proliferation of intoxicating products given loopholes in the legal definition of hemp.
Now it has become a case of trying to cram the genie back into the bottle. The U.S. market for hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids is huge, jumping from USD $200.5 million in sales in 2020 to nearly $2.8 billion in 2023; an increase of 1,283%. It’s grown further since, to around $3.8 billion.
